a libretto for the comic opera of my life

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Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt is inspired by spring plantings. We are challenged to pick the name of an heirloom seed, and incorporate or use that name to set the theme for our poem. I chose the Molokai Purple Sweet Potato.

My poem is informed by both the beauty and the heartbreak of Molokai.

Molokai is a small, gorgeous island in the State of Hawaii, formed two million years ago by two volcanoes. One of these collapsed into the Pacific, leaving half of the volcano intact to form dramatic cliffs at the edge of the island. At the base of the highest, most impenetrable cliffs, King Kamehameha V established a leper colony in 1866 and exiled thousands of Hawaiians to life imprisonment there.

Molokai is also home to Hawaii’s largest coral reef, a massive and beautiful but endangered species.

This week’s very unique photo prompt is from fellow writer Ted Strutz. Thank you for the challenge, Ted 🙂

The photo is filled with old, failed implements intended to contain the flow of water. When they fail, it floods.

It made me think of the homeless population that lives and hides among abandoned junk. How might a homeless man grieve the loss of his lifestyle?

That’s the micro theme of the story.

On a macro level, how might any man grieve the loss of his lifestyle–and the very ecosystem in which he lives–in the case of a real-life, cataclysmic flood? I’ve written a few stories about this environmental scenario previously: one ended on the highest floor of a downtown condo complex, and another ended in the post-op ward of a high rise hospital. Apparently, my protagonists survive the watershed by seeking higher ground….

Now I will try to combine the above themes with a little dark humor and a Twilight Zone ending!

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Welcome to Friday Fictioneers! We are a community of writers from around the world who post 100-word stories between Wednesday and Friday each week. The stories are all based on a photo prompt provided on Rochelle Wisoff-Fields’ blog. Please visit Rochelle’s blog for more information…and join us if you wish!